fyzygy

^ I want one! I would defer repotting until necessary.

Recently I was investigating edible weeds, and found that sow-thistle grows to a height of 1 metre. But I had backyard specimens growing at least double that height! Once your plant flowers, you might be able to get a better ID, even using an app like [email protected]

the spots seem to grow a little darker on maturity, possibly with a light crust or scab. but they don't seem to get any larger. emergent growth on another branch doesn't have the spots. the garden seems quite biodiverse lately, lots of different insects about. so maybe a beetle could be the culprit. there were ladybirds on those phyllodes a week or two prior to the emergence of the spots. first sign (?) was more of a rust-coloured blotch on a single phyllode, larger and more irregular than subsequent spots. Freakosystem, your input is much appreciated!

https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/data-and-analysis/bulletin/bulletin_1958-01-01_2_page007.html ^ includes some detailed botanical diagrams, results of chemical analysis of different plant parts, etc. Document title suggests older information, as published in the UN Bulletin of Narcotics. But new to me. A traditional tea from khat leaf (presumably dried) is specified at 5-15 grams per litre of water. No method of preparation is given.

Good to know. Probably beyond my budget though. Packing the roots in wood shavings (as commercial operators do fruit trees) seems to work fine for Acacias, it's a great space saver and makes a seedling easy to pack bare-rooted in a mailing tube or envelope. Obviously wood shavings come in many different grades and qualities ... I scored big bags of clean native-timber wood shavings from a manufacturer of picture frames. So far, so good.

I don't think there are pustules. Some of the older spots have a very light texture to them, but in general they're smooth to the touch and flush with the phyllode surface. The rust spots appear only on this season's (new) growth, and only on this one specimen.

Good to know, I will report back to UK seller.

Stems still seem very frail, maybe 8 weeks (?) since germination: the slightest drop of water will cause them to fall over sideways. They seem to crave sunlight, rather than the "light shade" specified in description of native habitat -- mine being kept quite sheltered. Germination rate for these imported seeds was less than 25%, seedling attrition due to damping off about 50%.

What is/causes this? Emergent phyllodes were spotless and bright green a week or two ago. Too much water/nutrient? (We've had an unseasonal amount of rain recently.)

Darren at Herbalistics informed me that A. phlebophylla is self-fertile, but may require the services of a native pollinator.

https://panaceachronicles.com/2016/06/08/growing-medical-coca-leaf-in-a-greenhouse/ Anyone have a copy of Bill Drake's Searching for Mama Coca? There is also a relevant chapter in his earlier book: http://libgen.is/book/index.php?md5=6CEBA45B9CDA1CC01E662474F1E5664C

This lot of seed pods freshly harvested from old mother khat, unknown viability, PM if you'd care to try propagating and I will send you some. Second pic. shows established clone, for reference.

At an independent Melbourne supermarket yesterday, I could choose from Hoyts, Royal Fields, or (Indian) white poppy seeds. This is the same food distributor responsible for the "Royal Fields" brand.

Anyone else tried using negative prompts? Twisted tech, for sure ... https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-26/loab-age-of-artificial-intelligence-future/101678206

I've heard that bees use electromagnetic polarity to navigate among flowers. Flowers being positively (or is it negatively?) charged prior to a bee visit, then reverse-polarity for a while thereafter. I don't remember the source: Attenborough on TV? In any case ... Shouldn't DC polarity make a difference, or is it merely the flow of electrons through the plant that does the trick -- in which case, you wouldn't need a connection to "ground" per se, just any two points on the plant? Is the technique said to work for potted cactus, substituting potting media for true ground? Or only for in-ground specimens? Would touching terminals to root and branch (on a bare-rooted plant) yield the same result? Sometimes I use a DC source to heat the wires in my beekeeping frames -- if you left the terminals connected long enough, you'd presumably overheat the plant -- granted, cactus not being as conductive as metal? Who knows? (rhetorical question) There is an interesting chapter on pioneering botanical experiments involving electricity, in The Invisible Rainbow -- http://libgen.is/book/index.php?md5=93E30FBB4FC43B490B7EB477C0795C37